Fig 1.
A CONSORT flowchart: Among 52 patients screened for eligibility (Brunnstrom Stage III, disease duration ≤6 months), none were excluded due to severe joint deformities, Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) <24, or other reasons.
After randomization, 26 participants were assigned to each group. One participant from the E group discontinued the intervention, and one from the C group was lost to follow-up, resulting in 25 completers per group for final analysis.
Fig 2.
Intervention design diagram: Figure a: Shows a patient wearing a heart rate monitor.
Figures b to f depict participants in the experimental group performing Zhan Zhuang (standing meditation), Du Li Bu (single-leg stance), Ce Xing Bu (lateral stepping), forward stepping, and backward stepping exercises, respectively. Figures a* and b* illustrate participants in the control group undergoing four-limb linkage practice and slope standing training, respectively.
Table 1.
Comparison of baseline characteristics between the E group and C group.
Table 2.
FMA-LE scores before and after intervention.
Table 3.
Comparison of holden walking function classification between groups.
Fig 3.
(a) Flexion, (b) extension, (c) abduction. Data are mean ± SD. ***p < 0.001, **p < 0.01, *p < 0.05, ns: not significant.
Fig 4.
Knee joint range of motion (ROM) improvements.
(a) Flexion, (b) external rotation, (c) internal rotation. Data are mean ± SD. ***p < 0.001, **p < 0.01, *p < 0.05, ns: not significant.
Fig 5.
(a) Dorsiflexion, (b) plantarflexion, (c) inversion, (d) eversion. Data are mean ± SD. ***p < 0.001, **p < 0.01, *p < 0.05, ns: not significant.